Effect of Industrial Sludge Toxicity on the Cell Growth of Green Paramecium, Paramecium bursaria

The effect of industrial sludge toxicity on the cell growth of a green paramecium, Paramecium bursaria was examined. P. bursaria cells were cultured in a lettuce medium supplemented with various concentrations of sludge suspension at 23 °C under LD (ligh and dark cycle) condition. Results suggested that P. bursaria proliferates normally even at 1.5% sludge suspension. However, 1.5x10 % sludge suspension 2 showed acute toxicity to P. bursaria. On the other hand, with 1.5x10 % sludge suspension pHwas raised up 2 from 7.3 to 8.8 before the incubation, no lethal effect was found in the sludge suspension. To investigate the lethal ingredient in the sludge, P. bursaria was treated in both sludge suspension and sludge supernatant solution. The result indicated that P. bursaria was very sensitive to the former, but not the later even after 7 days of incubation. These results suggested that the lethal toxicity of 1.5x10 % sludge suspension is derived 2 from suspended fine particles (insoluble parts). More research studies are required to elucidate the lethal toxicity in those fine particles to P. bursaria.